-Patterns of vibration on the surface tell us abut what the sun is like inside -data on solar vibrations agree with mathematical models of solar interior-neutrinos created during fusion fly directly through the sun-observations of these solar neutrinos can tell us whats happening in the core

Solar neutrino problem :- early searches for solar neutrinos failed to find the predicted number -More recent observations find the right number of neutrinos but some have changed

10.3 the sun-earth connection

What causes solar activity?-solar activity is like "weather" on earth-sunspots : are cooler than other parts of the sun's surface (4000K). Are regions with strong magnetic fields-solar flares:-solar prominences( all these phenomena are related to magnetic fields )

Coronal mass ejections: send bursts of energetic charged particles out to the solar system -charged particles streaming from the sun can distrust electrical power grids and disable communications satellites

How does solar activity vary with time?

-The number is sunspots rises and falls in 11 year cycles-the sunspot cycle has something to do with the winding and twisting of the sun's magnetic field

Orbital resonances are asteroids in orbital resonance with Jupiter experience periodic nudges. Eventually those nudges move asteroids out of resonant orbits leaving gaps in the belt .

How are meteorites related to asteroids? Most meteorites are pieces of asteroids. Meteorites is a air k from Alsace that falls through earths atmosphere. Meteor is the bright trail left by meteorite.

How do comets get their tails?

Formed beyond the frost line, comets are icy counterparts to asteroids. Also the nucleus of a comet is Ike a " dirty snowball". Most comets do not have tails. Comets remain perpetually for sun in outer solar system. Only comets that enter in inner solar system grow tails .

How big can a comet be?Pluto's orbit is tilted and significantly elliptical. Neptune orbits three times during the time Pluto orbits twice.

What are Pluto and other large objects of the Kuiper belt like? It's largest moon, Charon us nearly as large as Pluto itself .Pluto is very cold (40k)and also has a thin nitrogen atmosphere that refreezes onto the surface as pluto's orbit takes it farther from the sun.

Have we ever witnessed a major impact?Comet SL9 caused a string of violent impacts on Jupiter in 1994 reminding us that catastrophic collisions still happen. Also tidal forces tore it apart during a previous encounter with Jupiter.

Did an impact kill the dinosaurs?Fossil record shows occasional large dips in the diversity of species:mass extinctions. The most recent was 65million years ago, ending the reign of the dinosaurs. Iridium is very rare in earth surface rocks but is often found in meteorites. Luis and Walter Alvarez found a worldwide layer containing iridium laid down 65 million years ago probably by a meteorite impact. Dinosaur fossils all lie below this layer.

Is the impact threat a real danger or just media hype? Asteroids and comets have hit Earth. Some major impact is only a matter of time:not IF but WHEN. Yet major impacts are very rare. Extinction level events~millions of years. Major damage ~tens to hundreds of years.

How do other planets affect impact rates and life on Earth? The Influence of Jovian planets are the gravity of a Jovian planet (especially Jupiter) can redirect a comet . Jupiter has directed some comets towards Earth but has ejected many more into the Oort Cloud.

There is an asteroid belt due to orbital resonance. Orbital resonance with Jupiter disrupted the orbits of planetesimals, located in the asteroid belt, which prevented them from forming into a terrestrial planet. Many planetesimals were ejected, but some remained. These make up the asteroid belt today. Most of the asteroids, which were located in other areas of the inner solar system, have crashed into one of the planets.

How are meteorites related to asteroids?

Most meteorites are pieces of asteroids. Primitive meteorites have no experienced changes since the birth of the solar system. Processed meteorites are fragments of larger asteroids that have gone through differentiation.

How do comets get their tails?Comets get their tails from sublimation. Comets are the icy leftovers of planet formation. If a comet comes near the Sun, the nucleus heats up and its ice undergoes sublimation. The escaping gases carry along with dust. This forms a coma and two tails: a plasma tail of ionized gas, and a dust tail.

Where do comets come from?

Comets come from either the Kuiper Belt or the Oort Cloud. The Kuiper Belt comets are still located in a region beyond Neptune, where they formed. The Oort Cloud comets formed between the jovian planets and were kicked out by gravitational encounters with these planets.

How big can a comet be?

Icy planetesimals in the Kuiper Belt were able to grow up to thousands of km in size. Eris is the largest known of these objects. Pluto is the second largest.

What are Pluto and other large objects of the Kuiper belt like?

Pluto and other large objects of the Kuiper Belt are ice-rich. They orbit the Sun between the orbit of Neptune and twice that distance from the Sun. Their orbits tend to be elliptical and more inclined than those of terrestrial and jovian planets.

Have we ever witnessed a major impact?

In 1994, fragmented Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 impacted Jupiter which scarred its atmosphere for months. In 2009, there was another impact on Jupiter.

Did an impact kill the dinosaurs?

A major impact may not have been the only cause for extinction of dinosaurs, but mass extinction coincides with the major impact. This occurred 65 million years ago. Sediments from this time contain Iridium. An impact crater of the same age is located along the coast of Mexico.

Is the impact threat a real danger or just media hype?

Impacts are a threat, but the probability of a major impact happening in our lifetimes is low. It's not a matter of if a major impact will happen, it's a matter of when. Major impacts may occur every few hundred years.

How do other planets affect impact rates and life on Earth?

Impacts are always linked to the gravitational influence of Jupiter and other jovian planets. These influences have shaped the asteroid belt, the Kuiper belt, and the Oort Cloud. The influences also continue to determine when objects are flung in our direction.